Mario Hezonja

Hezonja was promoted to the club level in his native Croatia when he was 12 years old, and at the age of 13, he stayed for two seasons with Dubrovnik.

[citation needed] In July 2012, Hezonja signed a three-year contract with Spanish club Barcelona, at the age of 17.

For the 2012–13 season, he was loaned to the reserve team of the club, Barcelona B of the LEB Oro, the Spanish second-tier level division.

[citation needed] On 23 April 2015, Hezonja declared himself eligible for the 2015 NBA draft, as an international "early-entrant", just days after Barcelona's elimination in the EuroLeague.

[4] He had been identified as a potential lottery pick early in his career, and surprised some by opting not to declare for the draft in 2014, his first year of eligibility.

[10] He made his debut for the Magic in the team's season-opening loss to the Washington Wizards on 28 October 2015, recording 11 points in 25 minutes off the bench.

[12] On 28 February 2016, he made his first career NBA start and dunked four seconds into the game, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting in 27 minutes of action in a 130–116 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Hezonja finished the season making 79 appearances with the averages of 6.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists on 43.3 field goal percentage.

[21] On 17 December, Hezonja scored a then-career-high 28 points and had six rebounds and two assists, while shooting 8 from 12 from the three-point line, in a 114–110 loss to the Detroit Pistons.

[25] On 5 April, he recorded his first career triple-double, logging 16 points, 16 rebounds and eleven assists in a 96–120 loss to the Houston Rockets.

[26] Two days later, Hezonja scored a career-high 30 points, alongside six rebounds, five assists and two steals, in a 113–110 win over the Washington Wizards.

Enes Kanter Freedom, Hezonja's Turkish teammate on the Portland Trail Blazers, allegedly played a vital part in his transfer to the Greek powerhouse, having also expressed his sympathies towards both Panathinaikos and the country of Greece in the past.

[36] Hezonja was named Most Valuable Player of the 2011 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship, after leading his team with a double-double in the final, 21 points, 10 rebounds and three steals.

[citation needed] Hezonja was part of the senior Croatian national team that participated at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Hezonja playing for FC Barcelona Under-18 at the EuroLeague Junior Tournament Finals in London, in May 2013